"Optician Haggling" Discussion

Slapps wrote: »

Maybe it's me but if your selling items then really your no different, as a salesman is a salesman weather they are selling cars, glasses or even a service. If it's ok to haggle money off a car then why not a pair of glasses. Personally I find it offensive that( through no fault of my own) I have to pay high prices just to have the luxury of being able to see.
Rant over

Try reading my original post. I said I dispense - not sell! There is a difference. Dispensing requires specialist technical understanding. If you want cheap - go online (effectively dispensing yourself). Just don't then complain when you have any problems or need adjustments. You can't have it both ways.

I'd like to thank the OP for this thread, the saying goes "It pays to shop around"

Once someone has their glasses prescription there's nothing stopping them shopping around / haggling

nedmundo wrote: »

let's have a pop at the supermarket for the price of potatoes - £1 for 4 baking potatoes with a cost price of less than 10p?

Have you tried haggling? :rotfl: :rotfl:

Girlzmum wrote: »

I normally go to Specsavers for my glasses (I usually pay about £150 for 2 pairs so not complaining about the prices!) but am a full time student atm and simply can't afford new glasses - I know I need new ones as I can barely read any signs and my night time vision is horrendous. I was considering going and getting my sight checked and buying online but not sure how to go about it.

If you're a full time student (or just on a low income), try getting hold of a form called an HC1. Most optician's and some chemists will have them. It allows you to apply for help towards the cost of things like eye examinations, glasses, dental checks etc. The form is quite a daunting looking book, but most of it won't apply to you. I'm an optometrist and most of the practices I work in give free standard lenses and half price frames (or a small range of free frames) to patients entitled to help under the NHS voucher scheme.

As for haggling over the price of examination fees, spectacles and contact lenses, I usually "look after" my regulars, particularly if they are nice, friendly people.

I've got a high prescription (-14, ie quite literally cannot see past the end of my nose!) and prefer to wear high index thinned down lenses, not just for vanity (although the regular lenses do look quite awful!!) but that carrying all that weight on the face isn't comfy and can cause headaches after a while, and vision is actually a lot clearer through high index lenses too.

I'm sooo jealous of anyone who only has a low prescription and can get glasses relatively cheap without having to fork out for high-index lenses to go with them.

The NHS voucher for high prescriptions isn't much more than a tenner, which feels like a slap in the face considering the high-index lenses alone are £180 for my prescription!

Personally I find it offensive that( through no fault of my own) I have to pay high prices just to have the luxury of being able to see.

Me too!